


200 mph club

by smtowndream



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Basically: NCT as a tight knit racer group with Jeno as their star, China line as the new hot racers on the scene with Renjun as THEIR star, Everything is a side ship and only stated but not delved into but uh maybe we'll go more in depth, GET READY FOR ROAD RACER NCT!!, Jeno as best boy best racer in all of Asia bro, M/M, Renjun is ~ mysterious
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-11
Updated: 2019-01-11
Packaged: 2019-10-07 22:20:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,069
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17374307
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/smtowndream/pseuds/smtowndream
Summary: “People say I’m good then?” Jeno’s voice was deep, scratchy from the yelling that took place throughout the race.The boy fixes his stare on Jeno, observing him attentively. The look made Jeno feel almost squeamish, but he was unable to glance away. “Everyone does. I figured I had to come here,” He gestures to the race site before focusing on Jeno once again. “To really see if you lived up to the hype.”Jeno eyes flickered to the looming dark sky before giving his attention back to the boy next to him, whose eyes were equally as bright and beautiful at the stars above; if not more. “And did I?”“You most certainly did.”





	200 mph club

**Author's Note:**

> OH MY GOODNESS SUE ME FOR HAVING SO MANY UNCOMPLETED FICS STARTED... BUT I JUST HAAAAD TO POST IT. It's been in the works since Go era, and I'm just now posting it. It was my favorite work in progress until my undisclosed top secret Renmin fic that you can only know about if you follow me on twitter ~~~ I tweet about it all the time. ANYWAY back to Noren. This will be a few chapters, do not ask how many. I do not know YET, but uhhh I was planning to only make it two chapters, but I feel like I could prolong it. I'll see, it's all about how the writing goes you know? ++ I do not road race, however every chapter will be a racing term AND I did research about the cars. Someone correct me if I'm wrong hehe.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As Jeno pulled into the racing spot and surveyed the crowd, he noticed a fresh face. This was a boy Jeno was convinced he had never seen before. If this boy was there to attract attention, he certainly got it, demanding all eyes on him in his neon green sweatshirt. The bright shirt wasn’t all that captivated Jeno, though. This boy was striking, with ebony hair and piercing green eyes that were visibly glowing, complimenting his sweatshirt excellently. Jeno swore he had not meant to stare that long, but there was something entrancing about this enigmatic stranger that made him almost unable to look away. He almost felt weak, being under someone’s power like this. 
> 
> But when the stranger’s gaze met Jeno’s, the racer flinched.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THIS HAS NOT BEEN BETA READ AND I HAVE COLLEGE STUFF TO DO TODAY SOOOOO! When I get home, I'll go over this <3 I am just too excited to post.

There was something about the circuit that made Jeno feel exhilarated. There was this indescribable feeling that filled him when he was behind the wheel, a feeling incomparable to anything else Jeno had ever felt. To Jeno, there was just no way to relate how he felt when he was in the driver’s seat of his 87’ Corolla, tearing up the gravel road under him while he whirred past his opponents. The rush of pure, hot adrenaline pumping fast in his bloodstream renders most races blurs in Jeno’s mind, only allowing him to remember how euphoric it felt as he soared past the finish line, winning yet another race.

To others, racing was merely a group of boys with too much time on their hands propelling themselves down a track in too old cars for fun. But to Jeno, it had never been just driving. This was something the boy was good at. Call it ego or not, but he knew how good he was. He rarely was ever tested out on the track, and winning was something he had become accustomed to in his 17 years of life.

Which is why Friday night’s race came with no state of bewilderment for Jeno. He’d done this way too many times for his age, and so the wonder of it all wore off years ago. This was his habitat, which was evident as he pulled up to the usually barren back road minutes away from Jangam Railroad. The deserted road was now abuzz with people, a crowd continuing to form as time for the race dwindles down. Jeno had seen the sight before, spectators from all lines of life frequently attended these late night races. There were interested foreigners, piqued with the quietly conveyed rumors of Korea’s clandestine racing scene; there were inhabitants from all over the country as well, arriving in packs to watch some of the best racers in the field; there were even the starry eyed teenagers, as Jeno had once been, who observed the races quietly with hopes of not running into trouble. Jeno was familiar with many of the onlookers, the boy himself being very amicable out of the racing field.

However, as Jeno pulled into the racing spot and surveyed the crowd, he noticed a fresh face. This was a boy Jeno was convinced he had never seen before. If this boy was there to attract attention, he certainly got it, demanding all eyes on him in his neon green sweatshirt. The bright shirt wasn’t all that captivated Jeno, though. This boy was striking, with ebony hair and piercing green eyes that were visibly glowing, complimenting his sweatshirt excellently. Jeno swears he had not meant to stare that long, but there was something entrancing about this enigmatic stranger that made him almost unable to look away. He almost felt weak, being under someone’s power like this.

But when the stranger’s gaze met Jeno’s, the racer flinched.

“Hey, is that my favorite boy? Is that the star racer, Lee Jeno?!”

Something else, or rather someone else, called Jeno’s attention away from the stranger. Na Jaemin, undoubtedly Jeno’s best friend, was walking towards him. Jaemin looked unbelievably calm, offering Jeno an amiable smile as he neared.

“Nana,” The sight of his best friend made Jeno feel warm. It was extremely rare in this scene to befriend another racer, considering the feelings of rage some racers feel when they lose a race. Being friends with others caused hard feelings, and that was something Jeno had tried to avoid. However, he was blessed to have befriended quite a few racers when he was just starting out years ago, but Jaemin was no doubt the closest to him. “I’m glad to see you!”

“I literally texted you yesterday, you loser.” Jaemin grinned, hopping onto the hood of Jeno’s sleek 87’ Corolla, much to the protest of the older boy.

“I know,” Jeno pushed Jaemin off the car, wiping the spot where he had sat with the cloth in his sweatshirt pocket. “But you didn’t tell me if you were going to race tonight, you said you weren’t sure!”

“Na Jaemin? Missing out on a race? Now, does that sound like me?” Jaemin tsked, combing his fingers through his freshly dyed blonde hair before he leaned in to thump at Jeno’s head. “Put your handsome little head to work, Jeno. I never miss a race.” He paused. “Anyway, we have our work cut out for us tonight. A lot of the good racers decided to come out.”

While Jeno lifted the hood of his car to inspect the ignition, he hummed, curious to hear who he’d be racing against tonight. “Oh, yeah? Like who?”

Jeno began to tick the names off his fingers one by one as the night’s competitors flowed past Jaemin’s lips. “There’s Mark, who came with Donghyuck, obviously. Taeyong and Yuta are here, and I’m pretty sure I saw Jaehyun and Johnny somewhere around here too—I could hear Johnny’s engine from a mile away.”

Jeno nodded slowly, his mind adding together all the odds for the night. Lee Taeyong was good, fast and callous on the racing track in his cherry red Mercedes Gullwing Coupe. Mark Lee had to be the best racer there besides Jeno himself. He was only a year older than Jeno, but had skills that most racers years older would envy. Both racers came with their significant others; Taeyong with Jung Jaehyun, a seasoned racer, and Mark with Lee Donghyuck, an up and coming young racer with skills that increase every race.

Besides the four of them, Johnny Seo, Nakamoto Yuta, and Jaemin himself were all racers that could easily trip the other racers up and pull a landslide victory. Jeno could almost envision Taeyong or Mark beating him if he slipped up tonight. He could even imagine Jaemin whizzing past him with a cheshire cat grin.

“Did you hear me, Jen?”

Jeno’s head snapped up. “What? No, Nana. What’d you say?”

“You’re never listening to me, why am I even talking,” grumbled Jaemin jokingly. “I said that I heard from Mark who heard from Donghyuck who heard from Jisung’s friend Chenle that there’s this new racer who just arrived to Korea recently from China? Rumors are he’s good.”

This piqued Jeno’s interest indefinitely, popping the hood of his car to give Jaemin his full attention. “Yeah? How good?”

Jaemin leaned in. “Good. They said he hasn’t ever lost a race, and that he might even be as good as you. He’s here tonight to scope out the racers, he’s been at a few other races too.”

“Really?” Jeno’s mind was now considerably filled with images of the memorable stranger from only minutes before. “Nana, do you know what he looks like —”

Jeno’s cut off by the almost deafening revving of engines, signaling that it was time for racers to get to their starting places. When the two boys heard the sound, it was established that the conversation was over. Jaemin gave Jeno a wink before wishing his best friend a quick good luck, hastily jogging to his 98’ Nissan 240X. The racers always pulled up at the last possible minute, adding to the extreme adrenaline rush.

Jeno outwardly sighed as he hopped into his car, promptly turning on the car to pull it up to his place behind the starting line. There were about 30 other racers beside him in cars with loud engines that filled air with the stuffy scent of petrol. As the navy night sky that loomed over the site got increasingly darker, the night was only beginning for Jeno. He glanced over at the cars next to him only to meet the gazes of a striking red haired Lee Taeyong on his right, and a too pretty Jung Jaehyun on his left. Neither, Jeno notes to himself, were as alluring as the stranger from earlier. Jeno inwardly chastises himself for thinking about the boy yet again but still allows his eyes to travel into the crowd, perhaps in hopes of spotting the boy dominating of his thoughts.

Go talk to him once the race ends, Jeno thinks, it’s the only way you’ll stop thinking about him.

“Don’t get distracted now, pretty boy,” shouts a grinning Lee Donghyuck, purposely revving the engine of his pristinely white 00’ Integra to shake Jeno up. “We don’t wanna see the champion lose, now do we?”

“Focus on getting any other place else but fifth, Hyuck!” rebuttals Na Jaemin, knowing Jeno was way too permissive to talk back to Donghyuck.

“You’re gonna get it now, Na!” snarls Donghyuck.

The amicable banter was nipped as the racers spot the flag holder make their appearance, brandishing the checkered flag and twirling it in the air teasingly. In one smooth movement, the flag is brought down promptly and the race starts instantaneously. All the cars are revved to life, darting forward in an effort to get a head start. Jeno wasn’t an amateur, he didn’t think he had to gain first place in the early moments of the race. He knows better than anyone that getting first in the outset of the race may be easy, but maintaining first in a race as long as this one is what leads to mistakes and ultimately, losing. As Jeno drives, he keeps a steady pace, keeping his foot firm on the pedal as he breezes past the other racers.

Johnny Seo looks confident as he keeps both his hands steady on the wheel of his yellow Ford Mustang, his eyes trained on the road in front of him. While Johnny was ahead of most drivers, he obviously did not expect for Jeno in his Corolla to come bounding at him so early in the track. That much was evident as he makes eye contact with Jeno in his rearview mirror, a look of shock in his eyes as he accelerates. Jeno knows he doesn’t need to accelerate as the two come neck and neck at the curve up ahead, and in one smooth motion he overtakes Johnny and his Mustang. “Sorry, hyung!” Jeno calls out genuinely, only pressing his foot on the pedal harder to gain a good amount of distance away from the American. Jeno rides solo on the track for a while, recognizing that at this point of the race he was either too ahead or too behind. He figures that it isn’t the latter as he spots Donghyuck’s 00’ Integra, Jaehyun’s 97’ Porsche, and Yuta’s 95’ Miata.

Jeno could hear Donghyuck’s booming, derisive laughter as he gains road on the other two men, watching as Jaehyun and Yuta seem to curse the younger boy as they both fight to surpass him. Grinning to himself as he rides the bumpy and winding curve, Jeno takes a deep breath as he gets closer and closer to the other three. He fits his Corolla inbetween the gap between Jaehyun and Yuta’s car, somehow finding the time to wave to his friends. “Hi, guys!” says Jeno as he makes a sharp cut in front of Yuta’s car, now ahead of both men. “Bye, guys!” Jeno could hear the profanities as he advances.

Jeno sets his sights on Donghyuck, who seemed to think he was home free. However, Jeno had other plans for the younger boy as he presses his foot on the pedals faster, now side by side with Donghyuck’s car. “What the—fuck, Lee Jeno, go away!” He whines sorely. “Can you ever just not win a race for once? Are you ever gonna just lose?”

As the two hit a particularly narrow curve, Jeno moves his closer to the left, edging Donghyuck to the side enough for the boy to start hollering. Donghyuck eases on the breaks, scared enough of his car being pushed to the boundary to allow Jeno to go ahead of him. “Fuck! I hate you, Lee Jeno! If I didn’t just get this car repainted I would’ve wrecked your car so bad right now!” He growls.

“Next time, don’t taunt me! Or I’ll really show you what it’s like to wreck your car.” Jeno thundered the empty threat, speeding past the other boy. Jeno loved racing, this was his life after all. But, he didn’t love it enough physically harm someone to win. Every race he won with no cheating, fair and square—it was bad enough that he was illegally racing, he didn’t want anything else to be weighing on his conscience!

Jeno could sense the track ending as the turns got sharper, and the roads continued to wind. He wasn’t sure where the other racers were, and he impatiently accelerated until he spotted the only other cars on the track. He saw Mark’s 16’ Acura NSX, Taeyong’s 84’ Monte Carlo, and Jaemin’s 98’ 240X side by side, battling for first. Jaemin seemed to be ahead of the other two, something only slightly shocking to Jeno — he knew how hard his best friend had been training, putting in extra hours to work on making his curves smoother, and setting aside money from his allowance and his part-time job at the convenience store to fix his car. Still, he’s impressed that his best friend is holding his own against some of the best racers in the game.

However, Jeno didn’t like to lose, and he was frowning as revs his engine, announcing his presence. He watched as all three drivers glanced in their rearview mirrors, visibly distressed by Jeno’s sudden gain. He accelerates, first overtaking Mark, then Taeyong easily as he weaved through both cars. Both leave him winded, his seat belt cutting into his flesh as his knuckles turn white from how hard he was gripping the steering wheel.

“I had a feeling you were going to catch up to me, Jeno. You’re no fun, I thought you were gonna let me win for once.” Jaemin sighs loudly as Jeno is now on his right, the nose of his car slightly ahead of Jaemin’s.

“I’m sorry, Nana!” Jeno shouts over the wind that was getting progressively colder, making the boy shiver. “Next time, alright?”

“You liar!” Jaemin shrieks, but he winks as he watches Jeno sail past him. The only thing that made Jeno feel less bad about surpassing his friend was knowing that Jaemin races for the fun of it. His best friend had never taken racing too seriously.

If Jeno went a little faster, he could see the finish line. He saw the multitude of people waiting, their cheers roaring as they saw the first cars to shoot past. Jeno pressed down on the break harder than he had before, gripping the steering wheel so hard he started to yell as his car steadily reached the end of the track. The crowd was loud, clapping for Jeno as he stops the car a little ahead of the end of the line. He didn’t want the cheers though, he suddenly craved quiet as he shut his eyes, his back falling hard against the seat. His breathing was labored as it usually was post-race, as he tried to calm himself down. Winning a race brought this insane high to Jeno that was hard to bring down. Simply thinking that he beat out 29 other racers just to get to the top place is an insane thought in itself and it baffles Jeno every time.

“So, you really are as good as they say, huh?”

Jeno’s eyes opened immediately at the unfamiliar voice. Usually it was only Jaemin or Mark who came to talk to him post race, with the exception of both Jaehyun and Taeyong who more often than not came in tandem. He had not been expecting anyone to come and speak to him, honestly. Spotting the owner of the voice made a loud, almost unlovely gasp slip past the racer’s lips. Standing before him was the stranger from earlier, leaning smugly against the left door of his car. He was even more beautiful up close, the black hair and glowing green eyes contrasting against his pale skin in a way that made Jeno unable to look away. Even worse, the boy was practically smirking at him, making such intense eye contact in a way that would have made Jeno feel uncomfortable if he hadn’t taken an extreme interest in this boy.

“People say I’m good then?” Jeno’s voice was deep, scratchy from the yelling that took place throughout the race.

The boy fixes his stare on Jeno, observing him attentively. The look made Jeno feel almost squeamish, but he was unable to glance away. “Everyone does. I figured I had to come here,” He gestures to the race site before focusing on Jeno once again. “To really see if you lived up to the hype.”

Jeno eyes flickered to the looming dark sky before giving his attention back to the boy next to him, whose eyes were equally as bright and beautiful at the stars above; if not more. “And did I?”

“You most certainly did.” With that, he turns to walk away, not even saying a word further.

Jeno felt almost cheated from the interaction. This stranger had certainly been the object of Jeno’s thoughts for the past hour, breaking his usual pre-race concentration. And now, when he got the chance to talk to him, the boy leaves after a few spared words? “H-Hey! You’re just going to walk away like that? You’re not even going to tell me your name?”

The boy turns around, only for a half second. His lips part slightly, eyes trained on Jeno’s face. “What, you took an interest in me?” He asks, only half bashfully. The sudden question rendered Jeno speechless, making the other boy laugh before continuing. “Don’t worry, this isn’t the last you’ll see of me, I’m sure—”

The stranger was interrupted by the loud exclaims of Jeno’s name from the racers. Jeno was momentarily distracted as he spotted Mark, Donghyuck, and Jaemin walking toward him with bright smiles on their faces despite the outcome of the race. Not finding the priority in his friends right now, as they were several hundred feet away, Jeno turns back to the stranger. Jeno’s heart drops, however, as the beautiful boy in the neon sweatshirt was not standing directly across from him as he had been seconds ago. Jeno frowned, slumping back into his seat.

Who was this boy and why did he really come here?

* * *

Friday night’s race was the last one in the area for the while. Jeno rarely got a break from racing, usually training on weeknights after school work was done and racing on the weekends. However, the racers Jeno competed with were taking a well deserved vacation, which meant the boy had no races for a good week and a half.

Days without Jeno’s head being full of thoughts regarding racing were odd. His days passed by normally, going to school and hanging out afterwards with his friends. It gave the boy insight into how his world would be if he didn’t risk his life every weekend. It was almost therapeutic, Jeno thought, to only have schoolwork and spending time with his friends and family to focus on.

It was Thursday afternoon, six days since the last race. Jeno, Jaemin, Mark, and Donghyuck were all gathered around a café table after school, as they were most days. Mark was attempting to finish his pre-calc, but his work was being forced to stay undone and not being attempted due to Donghyuck doodling hearts all over his paper. Jaemin was sitting beside Jeno, forking at a piece of chocolate cake while scrolling through his phone. Jeno himself was leafing through his anatomy textbook, sipping his iced tea through a straw.

The loud buzzing of everyone’s phone in succession broke the concentration. Jaemin, with his phone already out, was the first one to look over the notification. “It’s a text from Sungie in the chat.” He was referencing the group chat the four boys had with their younger friend Jisung.

 **[03:44] jisung:** there’s a race tomorrow night by daegu  
**[03:45] jisung:** all the hyungs comes back tonight from jeju so i’ll probably catch a ride with taeyong or johnny if they’re willing to go!!  
**[03:45] jisung:** unless my favorite hyung mark would like to drive me <33333333

“I heard about this! Jisung mentioned it to me earlier when I saw him during my free period,“ exclaimed Mark. “Do you remember Chenle? Jisung’s friend from China who came down last year for the exchange program? He moved so he can finish up high school here, Jisung’s his host family!”

“Yeah, but what does Chenle have to do with the race?” asks Donghyuck, leaning in to swipe a forkful of cake off a whining Jaemin’s cake.

“Well, remember how he told us his family was loaded? He has the new Lotus Exige, and it’s this like, metallic blue it’s so beautiful —” Mark caught himself rambling, so he stops short, coughing before attempting to put himself back on topic. “Anyway, he’s racing tomorrow, and Jisung wanted us to come with him to watch the race.”

“I remember him saying he raced in China. He was really good, wasn’t he?” Donghyuck recalled, whistling lowly with a grin on his face. “He must be one of the headliners tomorrow, with his skills and a car like that.”

“Actually, he isn’t the big racer everyone’s looking forward to tomorrow. Remember the Chinese racer that I told you guys that was in Korea scouting races? Jisung told me that Chenle told him that that same racer is his friend from China! He also moved to Korea to finish school, and he’s like.. The best racer in China.” Mark informed the other three boys, leaning in as if he was telling a secret. “And I heard his car is super awesome.”

As his friends rambled on about the car of the mysteriously new Chinese racer, Jeno’s mind wandered back to last Friday. Was the evasively alluring boy who had came solely to see Jeno race last week this new racer? He had to be, Jeno thought, who else could he be?

“Jeno!”

Jeno’s period of contemplation was broken by the bothersome shout of his name from Donghyuck. His attention went from admiring the lid of his drink as he pondered the identity of the new racer to Donghyuck’s face. “Y-Yeah? What happened?”

Jeno realizes then that all three of his friends seemed to be eating the last forkfuls of their pastries, collecting their belongings. Donghyuck, ironically, seemed to be the first one ready, leaning against the wall as he waited for everyone else to be done as well. “We were talking about going to see the race tomorrow? Like the good friends we are, we’re already assuming that you’re probably going to want to come along.”

Jeno packs his anatomy textbook into his backpack before standing up, retrieving his iced tea from Jaemin, who had been holding it for him; and seemingly drinking from it as well, but Jeno would pretend to let it go unnoticed. “Obviously I want to go.”

The conversation was halted momentarily as the four friends graciously praised the owner of the cafe for the tasty snacks. They filed out neatly, waiting for each other while standing in a semi circle outside.

“Okay, so I’m not really down for driving all the way to Daegu on a Friday night. I don’t even think my parents would let me do that, if I’m being honest. So, how about we all ask the boys to drive us? Johnny could probably take Donghyuck, Jisung and I,” Mark looked at Jeno. “Taeyong and Jaehyun will be more than happy to take you both, I’m sure? If not, I think Doyoung is going down to that race to help with the cars and stuff, he can take you both, if anything.”

Jeno nodded obediently, glancing at Jaemin. “We’ll figure it out. I’ll text after I finish my anatomy homework and I’ll get back to you guys with updates in the group chat, that sound good?”

Everyone nods in agreement at the plan. At that point, Jaemin and Mark break off to walk home, leaving Donghyuck and Jeno to walk in the opposite direction. Jaemin and Mark only a block or two away from each other, while Donghyuck and Jeno practically lived houses apart. So, the two usually walked to and from school, for convenience and for company.

The two had been walking for a while, more than halfway to their respective houses and yet there had not been any stimulating conversation. It was almost too suspicious as Donghyuck was usually speaking at any given moment of the day. Jeno had a feeling his friend was up to something when Hyuck finally broke the silence, 2 blocks away from their houses.

“Jeno.”

“Yeah?”

“So, tell me why you were so distracted inside the cafe? What was the great Lee Jeno thinking about so intently that he couldn’t discuss with his three best-est friends in the entire universe?”

Jeno coughed, surprised at the sudden question from his friend. He hadn’t expected for any of his friends to particularly notice his spacing out, but at the same time he’s not surprised that they did. “Nothing, don’t worry. I was just, uh, wondering about anatomy class.”

“Jeno, you’re a great student but you’re not the type to be thinking about anatomy even after school’s been out for like, four hours.”

“Donghyuck, we left school an hour ago.”

Donghyuck shrugs. “Still. And my mysteriously accurate seventh sense is telling me you were not thinking about anatomy. I’m thinking that you had a certain person on your mind..”

Jeno freezes, eyes suspicious as he glared at Donghyuck. Even after years of knowing each other, Jeno still finds it unbelievable how Donghyuck was so amazing at reading him. He couldn’t keep anything from the boy, just because Donghyuck knew him too well and saw through most of his poorly thought lies.

“I’m taking your silence as a yes? You were thinking about that cute racer who talked to you last week, right? The one who came up to your car?”

Jeno knew there was no way in denying Donghyuck, his friend would figure it out eventually. And he definitely did not want to be on the opposite side of a Donghyuck who finds out his friend was lying to him. So he sighs, nodding his head. “I can’t believe you’re so observant.”

Donghyuck seems to perk up at that. “What? I was right?” His lips part in surprise as he bounces on his heels, a look of astonishing glee in his eyes. “If I’m being totally honest, I was so guessing when I said that! Like I was just assuming, I wasn’t being serious about any of it! Wow, I really am a legend, then.”

Jeno gapes. “I hate you Lee Donghyuck, seriously!”

Donghyuck winks. “You really don’t. But, tell me all about this cute racer! I live for seeing my friends prosper.” Hyuck whines, stomping his foot on the curb. “I want to see you happy with someone, Jeno-ah!”

Jeno rolls his eyes at Donghyuck then. Jeno, in all honesty, had never really focused much on the relationship aspect of life. He thought he was too young for it all, and aimed on concentrating on racing, school, and his friends. However Donghyuck, always having been bright and sociable, had taken a different route, finding a happy relationship with Mark. It never killed Jeno to say that sometimes as he watched Donghyuck feed Mark a piece of strawberry cake or interlock fingers, an odd and empty feeling would pang ostensibly in his chest.

He pushed the thought away hastily. “Hyuck, you know all I really care about is racing. I can’t get a really, really cute boy get in the way of that. Especially if he could potentially be a rival of mine!” The stranger’s brilliantly green eyes flashed in Jeno’s mind and he shivered.

“But think about how this would make a phenomenal drama plot! Top Korean racer Lee Jeno meets China’s top racer, and they fall in love! Eventually, you guys have this big race off and you’re like ‘ _no I don’t wanna win over you_ ’ and then he’s like ‘ _but you’re the best you have to win_ ’,” Jeno is glaring at Donghyuck as his friend comically plays out the drama he’s creating in his head. “Then, you both cross the finish line at the exact same time because you know, that’s _just how dramas work_ , and then you both win first place and adopt three baby cars together. The end!”

Jeno deadpans, but ends up laughing just hard enough to make Donghyuck smile wide. “That drama would end with 0.3% viewer ratings.”

“I think not! It’d be bigger than Goblin, bigger than Descendants of the Sun! A Lee Donghyuck original. My sheer creativity and brilliance is besides the point,” Donghyuck open the gate to his family’s own apartment, walking up the steps slowly. “Just.. think about it, alright? I’ll see you tomorrow!” With a wave, Donghyuck entered his apartment, leaving Jeno alone to walk up the stairs to his own.

It was early enough in the afternoon that neither of his parents were home, which left Jeno feeling oddly peaceful with the overwhelming silence that filled the house. He trudged up to his room, tossing his backpack to the floor and watching it land with a mum thud. Similarly to how his backpack was discarded aside, Jeno threw himself onto his perfectly made bed, his body sinking into the plush mattress. The unfiltered sunlight gleams its way gradually into his room, causing Jeno's eyes to flutter shut as the golden rays enveloped him in a glowing embrace.

Was that new racer better than him? Did Jeno have a right to even feel threatened; and if he did, should he be? Was he so blinded by the blazing memory of the new racer’s fierce look that he wasn’t reflecting on the situation rationally?

Jeno outwardly sighed in frustration. He didn’t want to consider all of this at one time, it brought on a slight headache that Jeno did not want to deal with at the current moment. Deciding in that moment that he deserved a break, he let his thoughts of the new foreign racer go, and slipped into a nap. 

* * *

Jeno’s last period of the day was an anatomy class that he shared with both Jaemin and Mark. Anatomy had never been the most riveting subject, and as the teacher uselessly prattles on about bones—or maybe she was talking about something else, the class rarely paid much attention—Jeno was doodling in his notebook. The class was just about over and rather than listening to the lesson, he figures it’d be alright if his concentration was solely being given to the tiny drawing of a tire he was sketching with his worn down green pen. That was until he felt his shoulder get poked with something sharp, probably a pen or pencil. Jeno turns around, eyes quizzical as he searched for who had poked him.

He was now face to face with a grinning Na Jaemin. “Sorry, I didn’t know how else to get your attention without disrupting the class.”

“How about calling my name?” Jeno shoots back, rubbing his shoulder with a weary and slow hand.

“How boring,” Jaemin’s grin increases. “Did you bring clothes? Doyoung is picking us up right after school, Daegu is a three hour drive. He said we should be able to get to Daegu by 6 if we leave early enough.”

“What time does the race start?” Jeno asks, fiddling with his pen that had been carelessly thrown by the edge of the desk.

Mark, who had been sitting beside Jaemin and intently listening to the conversation, chips in. “I think like.. 9:30? Johnny said we could probably grab something to eat before we go to the race, we won’t be getting back until at least 2.”

Right as Jaemin was about to reply, the obnoxiously loud ringing of the bell interrupted. The whole class collectively sighs in relief, grateful at the signal that the school week was now over. Jaemin, Jeno, and Mark messily scooped their books and pencils into their bags before slinging them over their shoulders and exiting the class.

“I’ll meet up with you guys in a minute, let me get my stuff!” Jaemin waves, going away towards his own locker while Mark and Jeno walked to their own.

“Doesn’t feel like it’s been forever since we went to a race, even though the last week was exactly a week ago?” comments Mark.

Jeno vigorously nods his head, stuffing some of his unneeded books back into his tiny locker. “I know! I haven’t touched my car since that race last week, I feel seriously race deprived.”

“Me too!” chirps Donghyuck, who had just arrived to his locker beside Jeno. “But, I’m really excited to see tonight’s race! I’m curious to see how good Renjun is, Jisung’s only been talking about him for the past week,” Donghyuck pauses, taking into account Jeno’s shudder at the mention of this new racer. “I bet Jeno is excited to see someone, huh? Are you excited?”

Jeno flushes, narrowing his eyes at his friend. “Shut up, Donghyuck.”

Mark seemed to have picked up on what Donghyuck was insinuating, and gave Jeno his full attention while zipping up his jacket. His eyes were wide, curious as he stared at his friend. “Who are you excited to see, Jeno?”

Jaemin and Jisung appeared then, with the infamous Chenle by their sides. “What, who is Jeno seeing?”

Jeno scoffs then, aggressively zippering up his book-bag before slinging it over his shoulder. “Nobody,” Jeno glares at Donghyuck. “Hyuck was joking. I’m just really excited to see this race.”

None of his friends seemed to have believed him, as they were still watching Jeno with unwavering gazes. Jeno racked his brain with ways to deflect the still eyes off him and create a new conversation. Suddenly, it hit him.

“Chenle!”

The loud and unexpected call of the younger boy’s name caused Chenle to quake slightly. Nevertheless, the blonde smiled at the older boy. “Hi!”

“You’re racing tonight, aren’t you?”

“Yeah, I am. I don’t really think I’ll do very well, everyone that’s racing tonight is really good!”

“Don’t say that, Lele! You’re really good! Like really good.” Jisung sounds passionate, like a soldier dedicating himself to a cause. He’s smiling bright as he looked over at Chenle. “I hope you win!”

Chenle flushes, his next words appearing ti be self-pitying, but something in his tone gave away that he was telling the absolute truth with no sugar coating. “I won’t win. Not when Renjun is racing.”

* * *

These were the the types of nights that Jeno liked best, even if he never admitted it out loud. He was shoulder to shoulder with Jaemin in the back of Doyoung’s Q60 with the top down, feeling the cool March breeze course through his outstretched fingers. The car ride was reticent, but not in the way that made anyone in the car uncomfortable; it was a pleasant sort of silence that made Jeno sigh happily.

When the trio were minutes away from Daegu, Doyoung spoke up. “So, we’re going to be getting there way earlier than we had expected. I told you guys that already, didn’t I?” The older boy looked in the rearview mirror to see both Jeno and Jaemin nod at his question. “Taeyong and I figured that we all meet up and get something to eat before the race, maybe some snacks or something! Are you both okay with that?”

Jaemin smiled in a way that seems oddly polite considering the conversation, but that was simply the manner in which Jaemin conducted himself. Jeno as well smiled at his hyung, nodding his head vigorously as he answered. “That sounds really good! I’m really hungry, I forgot to eat lunch.” Visions of piping hot ramen and tasty kimbap triangles aimlessly frolic around in his mind. He is surprised his stomach does not grumble.

“Jeno!” Doyoung chastises him with simply the way he pronounces his name. His power is impressive, admittedly. “What did I tell you? You have to eat lunch!” He whines, sounding awfully parent-like in that one second. “And you, Jaemin? Did you not eat?”

“No, I was catching up on a test I missed last quarter.” Jaemin replies, a little sheepishly.

Doyoung groans in what sounded like distress, visibly shaking his head with concern. “What am I going to do with you guys! When we get to the restaurant, I hope both of you order really big portions. I’m going to pay for whatever you guys want, alright?”

Both boys nod in agreement, thanking the older boy.

Conveniently, right then Doyoung pulls the car into the lot of a diner that would have been practically vacant without the haphazard parking of the four other recognizable cars. The three boys locked the car before exiting, walking towards the lit up diner sign and entering. Almost immediately, Jeno spotted the fourteen other boys gathered together around three tiny tables that had been pushed together to form one large one.

“I guess we're a little late, then?” remarks Doyoung, as the trio draw closer to the table that seated their friends. Jungwoo pull up chairs for the late arrivals, and Jeno thanks him in gratitude as he sits down.

“You think?” retorts Donghyuck, who was unsurprisingly seated next to Mark. Obviously, everyone else had arrived much earlier than Doyoung, Jeno, and Jaemin had. “With the way Doyoung-hyung drives, I'm surprised you guys didn't make it later.” He adds the hyung with a sickly sweet smile, enough so to almost throw off his biting words.

Doyoung sees right through it. He’s glaring at the younger boy, and leans to pick a fry off Yuta’s plate to flick at Donghyuck's head. He whines noisily, protesting loudly. This does not affect Doyoung one bit. “Shut up, Donghyuck.”

Donghyuck grumbles to himself, turning his attention to pick at a spare fry on his own plate sohe no longer vexes Doyoung about his outdated driving skills.

Jaemin, who hadn't spoke since they walked in, smiles and changes the topic. “So some of you guys ordered, right? I'm kind of hungry.”

They had ordered, but Taeyong reassures them that the band of boys had informed their waiters earlier that there would be some later arrivals, and they promised to come back for their orders eventually.

In that case, Jaemin looks over at Jeno. “So I was thinking that I’ll get a burger, and you can get whatever you want, right? Then, we’ll share a dessert. How does that sound?”

Jeno nods at the suggestion, smiling as he leans over to ruffle his best friend’s hair. “That sounds amazing, actually. How about a chocolate brownie? Like, the ones with the ice cream that you like so much?”

Jaemin beams at the offer, throwing his head back in pleasure at the thought of a deliciously hot chocolate brownie with creamy vanilla ice cream. “Lee Jeno, you’re speaking my language. This is why I love you.”

Chenle, who was seated at the opposite side of the table next to Jisung, somehow picks up on the mention of dessert. He nudges Jisung’s shoulder. “Chocolate? I love chocolate,” He announces to the table, everyone now paying attention at the extremely cute addition to the clan. However Chenle was only focused on Jisung, who in turn was focused on his soda. “Will you share something with me? Do you like chocolate?” When Chenle got no answer from Jisung, the slightly older boy giggles, poking the other boy’s cheek. “Jisung? Do —”

The early dinner hit a vertex as Jisung’s seemingly distracted hand knocks over his soda, the carbonated liquid dribbling off the table and onto Chenle’s shirt. He gasps, and not because of the soda seeping onto his cotton shirt, but because of the accumulation of boys by the door. Before he knew it, Jeno’s body was pivoting to glance at the mass of people who had entered.

And soon enough, his lips were parting scandalously at the sight. There were four or five boys standing by the doorway, uninterested looks on their faces. Jeno was not familiar with any of them at first, his mind only registering them as strangers. Until Jeno saw him.

It was the boy from the last race, the boy who had captivated Jeno and captured a good part of his thoughts. He never thought he’d ever see him outside of the race track setting, but lo and behold here he was, standing only feet away. He looked more comfortable than he had last week, in a white t-shirt and a blue and green hoodie, but nevertheless striking. Jeno was taken again, and he would have been suffice with simply staring from a distance if he could.

Then, they made eye contact.

And the boy smiled at him.

Jeno could feel his heart thumping powerfully in his ear, and it was extremely distracting.

“Guys!” Chenle was suddenly waving at the boys by the door, who seemed to cheer up after seeing their friend. Not wanting to disturb everyone eating, Chenle flashes a quick smile before standing up to push his chair in. “I’ll be right back”

He goes over to the boys, who by that time had already been seated at a table by the door. He doesn’t slide into the booth, but he leans on the table, aimlessly chatting away. At the angle the other group was sitting at, Jeno and the cute stranger could still make eye-contact. Jeno no longer had a desire to stare anymore, he wasn’t trying to come off as a creep or anything —

“Jeno!”

His eyes snapped back to his best friend, whose hand was stationed on Jeno’s shoulder, squeezing it in a way that should have been attention grabbing. Jaemin was shaking his head disapprovingly, tsking away. “The waiter has been asking what you wanted to order.”

Jeno made eye-contact with the waiter then, who genuinely did not look annoyed with the fact that they had to stand here for way longer than they had to — more so tired, if anything. “I’m sorry, really. I’ll have a burger, without the french fries,” (He’ll pick on Jaemin’s, as per usual) “And a water. I’m sorry, again.”

When the waiter left, Taeyong glared at Jeno suspiciously from across the table. “Are you okay?”

Before Jeno gets the opportunity to answer, Donghyuck responds in a sing-song voice. “Jeno is in loooove.”

Jeno glares.

“Jen, go to the bathroom and splash your face with water, or something. You look really pale.” Jaehyun advises, and Jeno takes the chance to escape gladly.

He walks the small pathway to the bathroom in silence, the muted flickering lights in the hall only throwing off Jeno slightly. He opens the door, which creaks loudly in response as he enters the seemingly empty bathroom. He rounds the bend to the sinks on the opposite side of the wall, gasping when he saw another figure standing there.

With Jeno’s luck, who else could it have been?

The boy turns to face Jeno, his lips parting in surprise as well as they made eye contact.

They both stood there, unsure of what to say to one another.

“We stare at each other, but when we’re this close, I’m never sure what to say to you.” The boy chuckles nervously, rubbing the back of neck with the palm of his hand.

“I guess I could say the same thing.” responds Jeno. And it’s quiet, but the awkward kind that makes Jeno cringe internally at how amateurish he is at all of this. “I guess.. We could start with introducing ourselves?”

“But I already know you.” Renjun starts, perhaps too abrasive for a first meeting. “I know a lot about you, maybe too much, considering we’ve barely talked once,” Renjun mumbles. “You’re Lee Jeno, from Incheon, 17 years old, and you drive a yellow 87’ Corolla. Which is a real beauty, by the way.”

“Maybe you know more about me than I know about me,” Jeno attempts a joke that definitely does not come across as funny as it had sounded in his head. Seeing the blank stare on the other boy’s face made Jeno panic slightly, so with an awkwardly deep chuckle he steered the conversation away from his bad joke. “How is it that you know so much about me yet I know barely anything about you?”

Renjun stares at him with a quizzical gaze. “You say that is if you’re not the most popular young racer in this whole continent? Even racers from Europe and the US talk about you. Word gets out, Jeno. Almost everyone knows something about you.”

Despite having this fame for almost a year or two now, Jeno had never quite adjusted to the fact that he was so well known in the racing community. “A-Ah.” Jeno wasn’t sure what to say. “Understandable.”

“But, I can guarantee that most racers don’t know as much as I do, so if you’re asking why I specifically know so much about you.. It’s because I’ve been interested in meeting you since I saw a video of you post-race last year. You have amazing skill,” Renjun pauses, averting his eyes from Jeno’s gaze. His voice drops to a mumble once again, and Jeno concludes then that Renjun is either extremely shy or really enjoys to mumble. Nevertheless, his words were loud enough for Jeno to hear. “Also, I just thought you were really, really cute.”

Jeno gapes, unsure of what to say next or how to keep up this conversation. All he knew in that moment was that he was most definitely blushing, and a soft smile was threatening to break loose on his face. “I think you’re really cute too, I’ve been wanting to talk to you since that time at the race where you came up to me and then left.”

“So that worked, huh?” Renjun seems amused at this. “My mysteriously cool aura made you wanna know more?”

Jeno laughs, folding his arms over his chest as he bowed his head slightly. “I guess you could say that, yes. Which is why I’m glad we’re finally talking.” He’s truthful, because Renjun was all he had been able to think about for the last week or two. “You’re racing tonight, right?”

“Are you coming to watch?”

“Why else would I be all the way in Daegu?”

“Then yes, I’m racing. Can I count on you rooting for me to win?”

After, a pause was suspended in the air between the two boys –– that was a trick question, and Jeno was aware of it. He’d been taught ever since he began racing that there was no such thing as allies. Everyone was pit against each other at some point or another, so he knew better than to so blatantly root for another racer. Yet he found himself biting his tongue as his eyes found themselves attracted to Renjun’s, their stares unwavering. His leverage in conversation gave him a confidence he usually never possessed.

Jeno raised an eyebrow teasingly. “And what if I said I was rooting for you?”

Renjun steps closer, and any bit of aplomb Jeno so boldly had thought he had was now out the window. The proximity had Jeno quavering at the most subtle degree. Renjun replied to Jeno with the most coy tone in his voice. “Then I’d say I’d be honored.”

As if the universe was constantly against advancing the connection between the two racers, the bathroom door swung open and they jumped apart abruptly. With a furtive glance at the other boy, Jeno could see a cherry red tint on Renjun’s cheek; an indication that he too was embarrassed.

“Jeno? We were all looking for you! The food got here and Jaemin was whining that he wouldn’t eat without you. So Taeyong hyung sent me to come check on you, but you look.. fine?” Chenle, today’s cute interrupter, seemed confused as his eyes darted between Jeno and Renjun. He was grasping to make a connection, but sighed lowly when his mind turned up blank. “Do you two know each other?”

“Everyone knows Jeno, Lele.” Renjun avoids the question with poise.

“But does Lee Jeno know Huang Renjun?” asks Chenle, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively—more so at Jeno than Renjun.

“I met him briefly at the race last week. We were just, um..” Jeno coughs. “Catching up.”

“In the bathroom?” Chenle was smiling, like the wholesome person he was. He probably did not even notice in thick tension between the two boys, he was so utterly naive, it was part of his character. “Anyway, come soon so your food doesn’t get cold, Jeno! And Renjun..” Chenle backs out the door, holding out a big heart for the older boy. “I love you!” And soon enough, Renjun and Jeno were left in solitude again. However it didn’t feel like they were alone, with thoughts of their close proximity from earlier looming in the room and both of their minds heavily.

“I guess I should.. get back?” Jeno says, shifting awkwardly on the soles of his feet.

“That might be best.” Renjun nods, not quite meeting Jeno’s eyes. Jeno wasn’t sure what to do then. Did he say goodbye? Did he stay and attempt to wrap the conversation up better? His thoughts were in tatters, and it must’ve been apparent because Renjun let out a laugh. “Jeno, I’ll see you later. I hope you’ll be my biggest supporter when I get that first place finish later.”

Jeno starts towards the door then, a dry laugh in response to Renjun’s reminder. All he offers in reply is a mere good luck, which makes Renjun hum amusingly under his breath. With nothing left to say, Jeno pushes the door open and makes his way out. He returns to his seat beside Jaemin, the entire room in uproar at just how long Jeno had taken in the bathroom. Doyoung coddles him, smoothing down his hair and grasping at his cheeks while asking if he was okay. After reassuring the table a dozen times that he was okay, everyone suspiciously goes back to their food and side conversations. Jeno is quiet as he digs into his burger with a ferocious hunger, no words coming out of his mouth for about the rest of dinner, spare the mini discussion with Jaemin over the haughty dessert menu; they’d eventually decide on the warm brownie meltdown, as they had agreed earlier.

Even the piping hot brownie, oozing with the chocolate drizzle that spilled off the fresh scoop of vanilla ice cream, couldn’t distract his mind from running rampant with thoughts of the cute racer who sat in a booth directly across the room. And when Jeno involuntarily glanced in his direction, the electricity that coursed through his body after realizing that the other boy was staring back let him know that Renjun felt the same way about him; intrigued, and dying to know more.  

* * *

The race was packed. Which frankly didn’t surprise Jeno. More times than not, races were full of spectators new and old. There were the casual viewers, who attended races every now and then just for the fun of getting out of the house: the newbies, who found that watching racers drift down abandoned tracks was exhilarating and came for the thrill: the veterans, who either were former racers or _know-it-alls_ who were certain that knew all there was to know about racing: and lastly, the racers themselves.

Jeno’s tight knit group never passed on an opportunity to scope out a race. There were fresh faces in new, decked out cars practically every week. Given, unless the racer was extremely good, they would barely make it through one or two races before realizing that street racing isn’t a side hobby; it’s a full blown dedication, which most people can’t keep up with before it manages to ruin them. Sometimes though, the intrigued ones end up being the racers who stay. Sometimes they’re good sometimes they’re bad, but what counts is that they so desperately want to be at the top that they’ll claw their way up no matter what stops them. Which is why it was necessary for Jeno to go to every race he could—he _needed_ to know his competition before his competition knew him.

Tonight’s race was full of racers with potential, which meant that the fight for the night’s best would be a lengthy and difficult one. Before a big race with fresh newcomers, Taeil was usually the one who’d find out the dirt. He’d search for who had the best car, who had the best win to loss ratio, if any of them raced dirty, things like that. After a thorough look through, he’d compile a list of those he felt could possibly be “competition”, and send it to everyone else. Jeno pulled up the list on his phone.

Tonight’s main contenders:

  1. **Zhong Chenle**
  2. **Qian Kun**
  3. **Wong Yukhei**



Jeno’s heart skids while looking at the final name on the list.

     4. **Huang Renjun**

Renjun’s name was in bold, italicized, and underline. There was a solid paragraph of notes, outshining the three or four sentences of forewarnings the others racers had. That must’ve meant Taeil must’ve hit the jackpot with the information he found, so Jeno decides to read through it. According to this, Renjun was born in Jilin, China only a month prior to Jeno himself. He races in a, not surprisingly, neon green Porsche Boxster. And according to Taeil’s notes, Renjun only started racing a year ago. Now that should have made Jeno scoff, possibly throw his head back in amusement while hearty chuckles passed through his lips. A year in racing is more than most accomplished but compared to veterans, such as Jeno for instance, it was next to nothing. What held back Jeno’s boisterous laughter was the concluding sentence in Taeil’s paragraph — Huang Renjun’s win to loss ratio is 35 to 0, and is considered China’s “prince” of racing, and second best in all of Asia.

Second best in all of Asia? 35 to 0? China’s best racer? All of Renjun’s titles swirled swiftly in the vicinity of Jeno’s mind, and the incoming knowledge paired with the booming music and blazing white lights made him suddenly feel very very lightheaded. Sure, Jeno had heard the whispers of Renjun’s immense ability, but after only a year of racing results like his were almost unheard of. Jeno couldn’t help but feel a prick of envy when Renjun eventually walked out to his car minutes later, hopping into the neon Boxster without any drop of discernible nerves. Now it was very obvious that this boy was not just an average racer, and here Jeno was fawning over Renjun with these formidable feelings forming even after only one and a half meeting.

 _"He’s good._ " Jeno whispers to himself as Renjun began to rev up his engine.

 _He’s competition_ , Jeno thinks as Renjun’s slightly craned his head to the side, finding Jeno with an amount of immense ease.

 _He’s **your** competition_, Jeno reminds himself feverishly as Renjun brazenly winked at him, having just enough time to turn towards the wheel and speed off ahead of everyone else.

* * *

Unsurprisingly, Renjun had won the race that night.

Wong Yukhei and Chenle rounded off for second and third, respectively. Chenle looked content as he marched back to Jisung, Donghyuck, and Jeno post-race, a blinding smile on his face as he was showered with praise. Chenle simply thanked everyone, commenting that he was just thankful to even get third place.

Jeno immediately understands what he means, because it was obvious even to the crowd that these racers did not go down without a fight. However, the real struggle was to land second or third place rather than first. First had been occupied by Renjun during the initial leg of the race, the middle of the race, and the end as he finished about 5 minutes earlier than second place Yukhei. It was an embarrassment for the other racers, coming in almost ten minutes after and assuming they had been on good time.

Sooner than later they would've found out that their fantasies of first place had been dashed by an audacious Huang Renjun, who lounged on the hood of his Boxster, the spitting image of serenity and relaxation. Jeno watched him with some begrudging feelings that would eventually be overtaken by an odd sort of admiration. This was his counterpart, the boy who was just as good as him, who maybe had the potential to be better. And for Jeno, who had held the best racer in Asia title for a while now, it was alarming to finally find someone who could genuinely rival him and give him a good race for his money.

After the results had been announced, some racers and audience members idled around and chatted excitedly while those in charge began to tidy up the race site. The chance to loiter and discuss the hottest new tires and other inconsequential items was not offered to Jeno this time around, as his group had a long ride back to Seoul. In his pursuit to link up with Jaemin and Doyoung in the crowd, he instead found fingers tapping at his shoulder impatiently. Confused, Jeno turned around to see just who it was who was trying to grab his attention. He shouldn't have been surprised when he was face to face with the boy of the hour himself, Huang Renjun.

Renjun seemed fulfilled, any trace of conceit somehow chased off his face. Standing in front of Jeno like this made Renjun look like any everyday boy, and not the racer who casually added another victory to his ratio for a grand total of 36 wins. He appeared to be happy that Jeno was here, given away by the small smile curled on his lips. It was nothing obnoxiously wide or eager, simply a grin with just enough felicity to assume that Renjun was pleased to be standing across from Jeno. "You came." He breathed out.

"I told you I would."

"I know you said you would, it's just.. nice to see you," Renjun clears his throat, unzipping his jacket only to unzip a second later; a sign of nervousness. "That's all." Renjun seems off-put by the fact that he actually said that, as if he had been thinking it in his head but hadn't wanted to actually project his thoughts out loud to Jeno. He moves quickly. "How was I?"

"Amazing," Jeno breathes out, not at all lying. "I'm going to be honest with you, I had no idea you were this good." Renjun only shrugs at this, so Jeno continues. "If you're the second best in all of Asia, how come you're not everywhere? Why haven't you raced in Korea before? Or even any of the cross-country races?” Jeno considers the competitions he attended in the past year. Surely, there were races where their paths should’ve collided. “Were you at Vietnam earlier this year?"

"I don't really like all the attention. It's never something I've really wanted, so I always preferred to keep my profile pretty low-key. I think it makes it even cooler, no? The fact that not everyone knows I'm the so called second best. So when they undermine me in a race and I speed past them.." Renjun muses, staring up at the night sky as an amused laugh slips out of his mouth. "It's the best thing ever, to see how shocked they are. I think that only makes me want to race harder."

"Race harder.. Until what?“ There is  hidden question underlying Jeno’s words.

Renjun's laugh was brash. He leans in as if what he would say next was a conspiracy, and his register is so low that is sends chills down Jeno's spine. "I thought what I wanted was obvious, but since you can't tell.. What would be the fun in telling you?" Jeno moves back first, but remains quiet as Renjun's sentence leaves a slight tone of incompletion in the air. "You'll be seeing a lot more of me, I think. This isn't my last race in Korea."

Glancing through the lines, that would mean that at one point or another Renjun and Jeno would have to race against each other. Initially, the thought doesn't sound too exciting. Racing against the as-of-late object of Jeno's affection and number one rival sounds pretty daunting.

Jeno parted his lips to reply, but was interrupted by the hollering of his name. He turned slightly, catching eyesight of a waving Jaemin, who was beckoning him towards him with wide gestures. He knew he had to go. Renjun must’ve noticed it as well, because Jeno could’ve swore he heard a lowly sigh. “Every time we talk, something always happens. It’s like the universe is trying to tell us something.”

“Even after all the interruptions, this is the third time we’ve found our way to each other.” Jeno pauses, his next words quiet enough to be a whisper. “Doesn’t that mean something?”

Renjun gazes up at Jeno. He seems to truly look at him then, taking in every single curve and dip of Jeno’s face. “I think so, Jeno.” He’s nodding now, vehemently as if he believes it with conviction. “I think it does.”

Jeno could hear Jaemin’s voice drifting nearer and nearer, signaling his cue to make an exit now. “Then if this all works out,” Jeno begins, pivoting away from Renjun to start towards Jaemin. “I’ll see you again. So I’m not going to say goodbye. Instead I’ll say.. see you later.”

Renjun only smiles in reply, faintly whispering it back; Jeno couldn’t have heard him though, he was already semi-sprinting away. He felt apologetic for holding the group up, and he hoped the extra minute or two he spent didn’t derail the entire schedule for the ride back home.

“I was calling you for like, a whole minute! Didn’t you hear me?” Jaemin asks as Jeno regroups with with him, bumping the boy’s shoulder lightly.

“Sorry, Nana! I heard you, but I bumped into Renjun.”

“Renjun? Oh, oh! Yeah, I saw!” There was a slight pause on Jaemin’s behalf, and Jeno waited in expectation for his best friend to inquire just why he was talking to Renjun. Jaemin’s shoulders lift, then level suddenly and he purses his lips. It was as if he had a thought, but dismissed it as soon as his brain began to formulate an actual sentence. “We’re riding back with Doyoung again, he told me he’d wait for us by the car.” He settles.

Jeno nods and the two walk to the car in silence, the only sounds were the muffled talking that faded as they drifted farther.. and farther away from the crowd. They found Doyoung at last, standing alone as he leaned against his car, phone in his hand as he stared with a blank expression. When he hears the two coming, he glances up exasperatedly and throws his hands in the air. “Where were you two? I feel like I was waiting a millennia!”

“Sorry! I’m so sorry.” Jeno apologizes without hesitation, genuinely feeling quite bad for making Doyoung wait. “I was talking to a friend and I just got caught up in the conversation, I guess. I didn’t mean to take that long.”

“Jeno, my dear Jeno! Don’t worry. I’m only joking, you know you can do no wrong in my eyes,” Doyoung assures, a hearty chuckle vibrating from his chest. He waves the two boys back. “You’re staying at Mark’s, right?” The two nod. “You guys should be in bed by now, I’m a terrible hyung for keeping you out so long. Let’s get you two home.”

The three got in the car, and the long ride back to Seoul commenced. Halfway back home, Jeno and Jaemin collapsed on each other in the backseat. Jaemin’s head in Jeno’s lap, with Jeno slumped over in the opposite direction. The two were so unbelievably tired, and were awoken by a few gentle shakes from Doyoung when they had arrived at Mark’s house.

Jaemin took his head off his best friend’s lap, moving his head to shake the feeling of sleep away while Jeno rubbed his drowsy eyes. The two exited together, spotting Jisung, Chenle, Donghyuck, and Mark sitting on the stoop of the house. Not wanting to delay the group and Doyoung any longer, Jeno waved the older boy away, thanking him a hundred times before heading over to his seated friends.

“Were you guys waiting for us?” asks Jeno.

“Well, we figured it’d be better for us all to walk in late rather than a few of us at once. I didn’t think it’d be fair to my parents to open and close the door so many times.” Mark explained, yawning.

“Sorry for making you guys wait, have you been out here long?”

“No, only twenty minutes or so.” Jisung says, brushing invisible dust off his jeans as he stood up. He stretches, as if he was tired of sitting in the same spot for so long. “But now that we’re all here, let’s go in, sleep, and talk tomorrow, huh?”

Unanimously the group agreed, and they all headed inside. They file up the stairs without so much as one peep, taking solace into Mark’s spacious room. The boy has set up before he had left for school that morning, with blankets and pillows set up on the floor. No conversation was exchanged as everyone figured out where to lay down. It was quiet then with every boy closing their eyes, eager to rest. The exception to this was Jeno, because even while laying down all he could think about were Renjun’s last words. This wasn’t his last race in Korea, so Jeno would definitely have to race against him at one point or another. Could he even win in a race against this seemingly off the scene ace?

He shakes his head then, forcing his eyes shut. He promises to think about this tomorrow, or at least not so late at night.

For now? He needs rest.

**Author's Note:**

> If you reached this far, because this was A LOT: comments, kudos, even light criticisms are accepted and ENCOURAGED! Comments and kudos make me SUPER SUPER SUPER HAPPY. If you really liked it, let me know on Twitter @ncthusiasts (that would make me, again, SUPER happy) or even send a CC https://curiouscat.me/ilovchungha Until next time! ｖ(⌒ｏ⌒)ｖ


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